The Evening Wrap: India seeks to block BBC documentary on PM Modi

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has issued orders to block multiple YouTube videos of the first episode of the BBC documentary India: The Modi Question and the over 50 tweets containing their web links. The directions were reportedly issued by I&B Secretary Apurva Chandra on January 20 using the emergency powers under the Information Technology Rules, 2021. Both YouTube and Twitter have complied with the directions, said a source. The documentary, produced by the United Kingdom’s public broadcaster, had been earlier termed by the Ministry of External Affairs a “propaganda piece” that lacked objectivity and reflected colonial mindset. “While it was not made available in India by the BBC in India, some YouTube channels had uploaded it to promote an anti-India agenda,” a government official said. It is learnt that YouTube has also been instructed to block the video if it is uploaded on its platform again. Twitter has also been told to identify and block the tweets containing the link to the video on other platforms. Sources said senior officials of multiple Ministries, including the Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs and the I&B Ministry, examined the documentary and found it to be “an attempt to cast aspersions on the authority and credibility of the Supreme Court of India, sow divisions among various Indian communities, and make unsubstantiated allegations regarding actions of foreign governments in India”. “The documentary was accordingly found to be undermining sovereignty and integrity of India, and having the potential to adversely impact India’s friendly relations with foreign States as also public order within the country,” said the official. Hours before wrestlers called off their protest, WFI rejected their allegations The Wrestling Federation of India had rejected all the allegations, including that of sexual harassment against its president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, and claimed that the wrestlers’ protest was motivated by a “hidden agenda to dislodge the current management”. The WFI denied all the charges in its response to the government’s notice and asserted that “there is no scope for arbitrariness and mismanagement “ in the federation. The Sports Ministry had sought an explanation from WFI after the country’s top wrestlers sat on a dharna and alleged that the federation chief sexually harassed women wrestlers and acted like a “dictator”. The WFI sent its reply on January 20 evening, and a few hours later the wrestlers called off their protest after the government announced that it will form an oversight committee to probe the charges. It also said the WFI chief will step aside till the investigation is over. “The WFI is managed by an elected body as per its constitution, and therefore, there is no scope for arbitrariness and mismanagement in WFI by any one individually, including the president,” the WFI said in its response. “The WFI has enhanced the image of wrestling sport nationally as well as internationally and for the record of this ministry, it is not possible without fair, supportive, clean and strict management of WFI,” it added. The allegations were made by renowned wrestlers Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia, Sakshi Malik and Ravi Dahiya. The federation brought to the notice of the government that it has a five-member sexual harassment committee in place, chaired by its secretary-general V.N. Prasood and which also has Sakshi as a member. It said the charges were “motivated, biased, unfounded, untrue and false” and that the allegations were made solely with a view to harm the president, the WFI and its coaches. Seven civilians injured in twin Jammu blasts Seven civilians were injured in coordinated twin blasts, which went off within a short interval of 20 minutes, in Jammu’s Narwal. The incident has posed a security challenge ahead of the Republic Day and Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ rally in Jammu next week. The first explosion took place inside a parked vehicle in Narwal’s Transport Yard area around 11 a.m. followed by the second blast metres away in another vehicle. The condition of the seven injured in these blasts was stated to be stable, officials said. “The first explosion took place inside a parked Bolero vehicle around 11 a.m. The area was vacated immediately. As the process of evacuation was completed, another explosion took place just 50 metres away. All the injured are stable. The incident is being investigated,” Additional Director-General of Police Mukesh Singh said. The police could not immediately divulge the details about the nature of blasts. A forensic team lifted traces of explosives from the spot to determine if it was an improvised explosive device (IED) with a timer or a sticky bomb, officials said. J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha was briefed by top police officials about the incident. He called for “urgent steps to identify and take action against those responsible”. Sinha has also announced a relief of ₹50,000 for those injured in the incident. At annual police meet, more detention centres and use of biometrics suggested Creation of a greater number of detention centres and use of biometrics to identify and deport foreigners who overstay are some of the measures that were discussed at the ongoing annual police conference in Delhi chaired by Home Minister Amit Shah. The police officials also sought clarity on government’s policy when it came to the Rohingya, or refugees recognised by the United Nations as India is not a signatory to the United Nations Refugee Convention of 1951 and its 1967 Protocol. On January 20, the first day of the 57th Directors-General of Police/Inspectors-General of Police Conference, a session was dedicated on concerted strategy to identify and deport overstaying foreigners in India. According to a government official, per the immigration database, the number of foreigners who overstayed in the years 2019, 2020 and 2021 stood at 54,576, 40,239 and 25,143 respectively. One of the challenges pointed out by officials was alleged misuse of tourist visa and student visa and it was asserted that biometrics may be used extensively to detect such offenders. A Karnataka Police official suggested providing a unique number to foreigners arriving in India that needs to be quoted for availing any kind of services such as mobile phone connection, accommodation, travel, among others. The conference also deliberated on fixing accountability of service providers hotels, educational institutes and hospitals for not reporting presence of foreigners. Fast track trial of court cases and use of plea bargaining in petty cases was also suggested for early deportation. The challenges posed by the unfenced border at Nepal and Myanmar was also discussed. It was said that the free movement regime gives rise to security issues and other than smuggling of various items along the Nepal border. Along the Myanmar border, a free movement regime operates for residents residing in a 16 km belt in both the countries. First Indian intranasal COVID vaccine to be launched on January 26 Homegrown vaccine maker Bharat Biotech will launch its intranasal COVID-19 vaccine iNCOVACC, the first of its kind in India, on January 26, the company’s chairman and managing director Krishna Ella said. Interacting with students at the India International Science Festival in Bhopal, Ella also said that the homegrown vaccine for the lumpy skin disease in cattle, Lumpi-ProVacInd, is likely to be launched next month. “Our nasal vaccine will be officially launched on January 26, on Republic Day,” Ella said, participating in the ‘Face-to-Face with New Frontiers in Science’ segment of the IISF, organised at the Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology (MANIT). In December, Bharat Biotech had announced that it would sell the intranasal vaccine for ₹325 per shot for procurement by the government and ₹800 per shot for private vaccination centres. In Brief: A gang rape survivor in Odisha’s Keonjhar district alleged that she had to wait in a police van for 12 hours for her medical examination. The incident took place in Anandapur sub-division of the district after a case of gang rape was registered at the Soso police station on 19 January. The 37-year-old woman was taken in a police van to Anandapur sub-divisional hospital on 19 January morning where doctors refused to undertake her medical examination as the place of occurrence of the crime was under Salania Community Health Centre area. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 21 JANUARY 2023 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( I&B Ministry issues orders to block BBC’s Modi documentary on YouTube, Twitter The [Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has issued orders to block multiple YouTube videos of the first episode of the BBC documentary India: The Modi Question]( and the over 50 tweets containing their web links. The directions were reportedly issued by I&B Secretary Apurva Chandra on January 20 using the emergency powers under the Information Technology Rules, 2021. Both YouTube and Twitter have complied with the directions, said a source. The documentary, produced by the United Kingdom’s public broadcaster, had been earlier termed by the Ministry of External Affairs a “propaganda piece” that lacked objectivity and reflected colonial mindset. “While it was not made available in India by the BBC in India, some YouTube channels had uploaded it to promote an anti-India agenda,” a government official said. It is learnt that YouTube has also been instructed to block the video if it is uploaded on its platform again. Twitter has also been told to identify and block the tweets containing the link to the video on other platforms. Sources said senior officials of multiple Ministries, including the Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs and the I&B Ministry, examined the documentary and found it to be “an attempt to cast aspersions on the authority and credibility of the Supreme Court of India, sow divisions among various Indian communities, and make unsubstantiated allegations regarding actions of foreign governments in India”. “The documentary was accordingly found to be undermining sovereignty and integrity of India, and having the potential to adversely impact India’s friendly relations with foreign States as also public order within the country,” said the official. Hours before wrestlers called off their protest, WFI rejected their allegations The [Wrestling Federation of India had rejected all the allegations, including that of sexual harassment against its president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh]( and claimed that the wrestlers’ protest was motivated by a “hidden agenda to dislodge the current management”. The WFI denied all the charges in its response to the government’s notice and asserted that “there is no scope for arbitrariness and mismanagement “ in the federation. The Sports Ministry had sought an explanation from WFI after the country’s top wrestlers sat on a dharna and alleged that the federation chief sexually harassed women wrestlers and acted like a “dictator”. The WFI sent its reply on January 20 evening, and a few hours later the wrestlers called off their protest after the government announced that it will form an oversight committee to probe the charges. It also said the WFI chief will step aside till the investigation is over. “The WFI is managed by an elected body as per its constitution, and therefore, there is no scope for arbitrariness and mismanagement in WFI by any one individually, including the president,” the WFI said in its response. “The WFI has enhanced the image of wrestling sport nationally as well as internationally and for the record of this ministry, it is not possible without fair, supportive, clean and strict management of WFI,” it added. The allegations were made by renowned wrestlers Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia, Sakshi Malik and Ravi Dahiya. The federation brought to the notice of the government that it has a five-member sexual harassment committee in place, chaired by its secretary-general V.N. Prasood and which also has Sakshi as a member. It said the charges were “motivated, biased, unfounded, untrue and false” and that the allegations were made solely with a view to harm the president, the WFI and its coaches. Seven civilians injured in twin Jammu blasts [Seven civilians were injured in coordinated twin blasts, which went off within a short interval of 20 minutes, in Jammu’s Narwal](. The incident has posed a security challenge ahead of the Republic Day and Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ rally in Jammu next week. The first explosion took place inside a parked vehicle in Narwal’s Transport Yard area around 11 a.m. followed by the second blast metres away in another vehicle. The condition of the seven injured in these blasts was stated to be stable, officials said. “The first explosion took place inside a parked Bolero vehicle around 11 a.m. The area was vacated immediately. As the process of evacuation was completed, another explosion took place just 50 metres away. All the injured are stable. The incident is being investigated,” Additional Director-General of Police Mukesh Singh said. The police could not immediately divulge the details about the nature of blasts. A forensic team lifted traces of explosives from the spot to determine if it was an improvised explosive device (IED) with a timer or a sticky bomb, officials said. J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha was briefed by top police officials about the incident. He called for “urgent steps to identify and take action against those responsible”. Sinha has also announced a relief of ₹50,000 for those injured in the incident. At annual police meet, more detention centres and use of biometrics suggested Creation of a greater number of detention centres and use of biometrics to identify and deport foreigners who overstay are some of the [measures that were discussed at the ongoing annual police conference in Delhi]( chaired by Home Minister Amit Shah. The police officials also sought clarity on government’s policy when it came to the Rohingya, or refugees recognised by the United Nations as India is not a signatory to the United Nations Refugee Convention of 1951 and its 1967 Protocol. On January 20, the first day of the 57th Directors-General of Police/Inspectors-General of Police Conference, a session was dedicated on concerted strategy to identify and deport overstaying foreigners in India. According to a government official, per the immigration database, the number of foreigners who overstayed in the years 2019, 2020 and 2021 stood at 54,576, 40,239 and 25,143 respectively. One of the challenges pointed out by officials was alleged misuse of tourist visa and student visa and it was asserted that biometrics may be used extensively to detect such offenders. A Karnataka Police official suggested providing a unique number to foreigners arriving in India that needs to be quoted for availing any kind of services such as mobile phone connection, accommodation, travel, among others. The conference also deliberated on fixing accountability of service providers hotels, educational institutes and hospitals for not reporting presence of foreigners. Fast track trial of court cases and use of plea bargaining in petty cases was also suggested for early deportation. The challenges posed by the unfenced border at Nepal and Myanmar was also discussed. It was said that the free movement regime gives rise to security issues and other than smuggling of various items along the Nepal border. Along the Myanmar border, a free movement regime operates for residents residing in a 16 km belt in both the countries. First Indian intranasal COVID vaccine to be launched on January 26 Homegrown vaccine maker [Bharat Biotech will launch its intranasal COVID-19 vaccine iNCOVACC, the first of its kind in India, on January 26]( the company’s chairman and managing director Krishna Ella said. Interacting with students at the India International Science Festival in Bhopal, Ella also said that the homegrown vaccine for the lumpy skin disease in cattle, Lumpi-ProVacInd, is likely to be launched next month. “Our nasal vaccine will be officially launched on January 26, on Republic Day,” Ella said, participating in the ‘Face-to-Face with New Frontiers in Science’ segment of the IISF, organised at the Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology (MANIT). In December, Bharat Biotech had announced that it would sell the intranasal vaccine for ₹325 per shot for procurement by the government and ₹800 per shot for private vaccination centres. In Brief: A [gang rape survivor in Odisha’s Keonjhar district alleged that she had to wait in a police van for 12 hours for her medical examination](. The incident took place in Anandapur sub-division of the district after a case of gang rape was registered at the Soso police station on 19 January. The 37-year-old woman was taken in a police van to Anandapur sub-divisional hospital on 19 January morning where doctors refused to undertake her medical examination as the place of occurrence of the crime was under Salania Community Health Centre area. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. First Day First Show Stay up-to-date on all things cinema with the "First Day First Show" cinema & entertainment newsletter. Every week, we bring you movie reviews, news from regional cinema, Bollywood, Hollywood, and beyond, as well as updates from the streaming platforms. Whether you're a cinephile or just looking for your next great binge-watch, we've got you covered. 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